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What is bone broth, and what’s the craze?

Bone broth is basically making soup. The key to bone broth that you have to simmer it for at least 18 hours to get the full benefits. You also need to add a little raw, organic, apple cider vinegar. This aids in drawing out the minerals from the bones, marrow and cartilage.

The longer you simmer the broth, the more it releases all the calcium, magnesium, glucosamine and chondroitin. These minerals are known to be beneficial in the treatment of osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.

Hey, remember when I said I was going to share more soup recipes with you? Well, here’s another one. We’ve got so many carrots and sweet potatoes from our crop share, I thought I’d share a nice soup recipe with you.

There are so many ways you can change the flavor profile of this soup. As I mention in the video, make a batch and then break it into four pots and season each one differently. See what you like best.

We ended up topping ours off with fresh cilantro and really liked the way that tasted. I bet if we added a hint of lime, that would’ve been yummy too.

It’s all about your taste buds and what you like. But I promise you, this basic soup is flavorful on its own. Not only that, there’s so many healthful benefits from it. [Read more…]

I love sharing recipes with you guys. It’s fun because every time I share a recipe with you, I cook it first so that I can get some cool pictures. That makes Spiro very happy because he loves when I cook up a storm. I don’t know if I mentioned it or not, (I’m so forgetful) but I’m going to check out a culinary school today. I’m pretty excited. Even though I know how to cook, I figured that school will broaden my horizons and teach me several styles of cooking. Combining my nutrition education with a formal culinary education is a winning combination. I’ll keep you posted. Anyway, today’s recipe originated from Weber Nation. I omit the cream, as they recommend because this soup is creamy enough all on its own. I’ve also altered some of the spices. This is a wonderful soup in the fall and winter as the ginger really warms your tummy. Here’s my recipe for grilled butternut squash soup. Enjoy!

Lightly brush or spray the squash, onion slices, and ginger on all sides with oil. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Grill over Direct Medium heat until the vegetables are well marked, about 10 minutes, turning once. Finely chop the ginger. In a large saucepan, combine the sweet potatoes, onion, ginger, chicken stock, allspice, and cayenne. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes.

Allow the soup to cool for 10 to 15 minutes. In a blender or food processor and in at least two batches, carefully puree the soup. Return the soup to the pan. Add the parsley and lime juice, and heat to serving temperature. Taste and season with salt and pepper, if necessary. Serve hot. Makes about 8 cups

You all know how much I love to cook. With the weather starting to get a little cooler, I’ll definitely be in my Cookin’ Momma mode. The other day, I had several people ask me for some pasta recipes. Now, even though, I’m Italian, I try not to have pasta too often. We do have a few favorites that I have and will be sharing with you. Since we’re such soup fanatics, I thought I’d share my recipe for pasta figioli. What makes mine different is I make it without any meat. However, sometimes I use chicken broth and sometimes I use vegetable broth. It depends on what I’ve got in the house. Also, you can switch up the pasta. I always use to use ditalini but now I use quinoa pasta shells. I like the health benefits of the quinoa over the white flour, so we’ve switched all our pasta over to quinoa when we can. If you like pasta figioli, I highly recommend you try this recipe. Don’t be fooled by it being meatless. It’s got tons of flavor. And a cool bonus, it freezes well, so you can have something quick to grab when you need it. Enjoy!